Rather than further expose my wacky sense of humor this week, I'm submitting the following tribute to dads. We do more than we get credit for, sometimes. So if you're a dad and your kids groan when you're around, hold your head up high and take it like a man. After all, it's a dad's life.

If you're a dad, take pride in all you do to support your family, even if your kids think you dress badly. And if you know a dad, take a minute to thank him for what he does for his kids.

Come to think of it, many of us are coaches, trainers, mentors and scout leaders. So thank a dad for what he does for other people's kids, too.

Derek Gwinn is the project manager for Operation Us. He and his wife live with two boys, a half-dozen fish and one ugly cat. An avowed "geek" and graduate of the University of Kentucky, he's easily distracted by new technology or Wildcat Basketball.

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The Chalkboard at the Top of the Stairs

There was a chalkboard at the top of the stairs from the basement. After we shucked off our work boots, hung up our farm coats and tramped up the stairs to open the door, there it was. Our father used it to post logic problems or puzzles for us to think about and attempt to solve.

At breakfast, at least once a week or more, he queried us on new vocabulary words often from the Reader's Digest "Word Power" section, asking us if we knew what they meant. "Use them," he said, "and they will be yours."